Hang in there Omar…New York City is pulling for you.

Contact R. Craig Evans at his office to find out where monetary donations can be made on behalf of Omar’s defence.

Visit http://www.cumbavac.org If you’re being bullied or to find out what you can do to stop bullies in your community.

The direct link to Bullying is:
http://www.cumbavac.org/Bullying_Violence_Vandalism.htm

Sorry for the confusion in the above post.

the kid axed another kid in the face. no matter what his reason is he deserves punishment

Are you kidding me New yorker of Manhattan. I wouldnt give a penny towards his defense. I hope they lock him up and throw away the key. You obviously dont know the WHOLE story. And regardless of what was happening or what was said that child did not deserve to be struck in the face with an axe. That is attempted murder and Omar will get what he deservres. You must have been dropped on your head as a child!!

We have removed a comment on this article from “mike of mechanicsville.” Please keep in mind that personal attacks are not welcome here and that point of view of others are to be respected. Please refer to the terms and conditions that you agree to when submitting a comment if you need any clarification.

Thank you,
Brian French
Mechanicsville Local

You must be kidding. Hang in there Omar. How bout hang in there victim that took over 100 stitches to his face. I wouldnt give one penny to his defense and to have the audacity to ask for that is unbelievable. Bullying or not and no matter who said what noone deserves to be struck in the face with an axe. I hope the judicial system works here and that the facts are presented and the proper verdict and sentence is handed down.

This situation is clearly a tragedy for both young men, their families, their friends and the community.  It seems this single act is the culmination of many negative acts before it.  While clearly the physical attack is unacceptable behavior/response, one must consider many contributory variables.  Additionally, these young men do not and did not stand alone in this escalation.  Many persons participated in, encouraged, overheard and/or observed yet overlooked negative exchanges.  Did the community, friends, teachers, neighbors, parents fail these boys?  What could we/should we have done to have intervened thereby salvaging the lives of two young men who I venture to say would like to re-live that day as they remember it in hindsight.  Bullying is without a doubt unacceptable.  Retaliation is equally unacceptable.  However, verbal/mental bullying is impossible to prove; therefore, it is largely tolerated.  People do have a stress/frustration limit - we all do.  I am so incredibly saddened that both of these boys must cope with this for the remainder of their lives - neither do I believe fully understood the potential seriousness/ramifications of their actions.  I encourage the remaining Lee Davis school body to rise to the challenge, learn from this tragedy and treat others in a mature and respectful manner.

Concerned LDHS Parent

Concerned LDHS Parent…Well Put, Well said!
I couldn’t agree more!

Another LDHS parent

Amen to that ldhs parent. This is a defining moment for our community. Will we rally to assist all involved become better in conflict resolution skills & life skills or will we as a community wait for a bigger more devastating event, then make national news and wonder what could we have done. It takes a village to raise a child. Please lets be that village.

I don’t know what to say. People were real shook up at school and people didn’t believe it at first, but it’s actually happening.

I have to say that the situation for both boys is a very unfortunate one. I am not here to reprimand anyone but just thought I would say a few words. For starters where are the parents? I myself may be a young parent, with a 6 month old child, and a whole life of worries for her in front of me, but if I knew my child was having problems with either being bullied or being a bully in school, I would have done my very best to try and talk to my child, and to the school, to try and help the situation from the get go. WHERE WERE YOU AS A PARETN? Did you not see the signs of trouble in your own children? This whole situation could have been somewhat prevented, if you as a parent were more in tuned with your own children. You as a parent should have stepped into their lives to reach out and help them as much as you can. I know that you cannot watch and control the actions of another human being, step by step, but could you have at least in some form of a way reached out to your own children to help them.
On another note, I do not think that Omar K. Abdelaal should be tried as an adult by any means. Because he is a juvenile, his picture should never have placed in the paper! Where is the protection for a juvenile in the media? Or are all you soaking up the drama? He should be tried as a juvenile.
I will say that I do not agree with the way Omar K. Abdelaal had handled the situation.  I do believe that there should be some form of a punishment for him, along with some type of therapy sessions. But 20 to life? Get Real! That is a bit extreme, don’t you think? He is a 16 yr old kid, who has a whole life in front of him, who now has to go through life, reliving this little moment for the rest of his life. Isn’t that bad enough? What he did may have not been right, but no person should ever be pushed to their limits the way that he had been pushed. This to me seems to be one of those knee jerk reactions. He just was not thinking.
As for the child who was struck with the weapon, though he has been labeled a “victim” in this situation, he is not a victim at all. I personally feel that he should be punished as well. You cannot live your life being a bully, and asking for trouble. Obviously you will find it whether you like it or not.
It’s sad that one minor problem from the beginning escalated into a situation like this. I do understand that no parent can always keep track of their child, but if you can at least some kind of sign of trouble, sit down with your child, and talk to them. What will it hurt?
I do understand that I am young, but I have 2 brothers that are the ages of 14 and 16. As an older sibling I know my boundaries with them, with their teenage lives. But I can tell when they are having problems, and when they need help. Whether it is school, being picked on and so forth. If I as a sibling can see the signs, why can’t you as parents?

As a 2002 graduate of LD this is pretty shocking. Do I believe this kid deserves a 20 yr sentence, probably not, but that is for the system to decide. Someone asked where the parents were, these are not 10 yr old children, and parents cannot be leashed to their kids 24/7. These are however, young adults who are beyond the age of learning that actions and wrong actions have consequences. This young man has a serious problem. This is not two children swinging fists on the playground, this boy picked up a weapon. We don’t know if he intent was to kill or do serious bodily harm, but we all know he was not chopping wood. I didn’t see the tape and I am not sure of how the confrontation began or if the victim was armed and what not, but regardless, Omar needs to learn the consequences of his wrong actions and I much rather he learn them in an environment where he is not a danger to himself and others and I would prefer he learn this now and now after he has swung another ax or fired a gun..

On a side note, I do not understand why someone would have the audacity to solicit donations for the DEFENSE of the guilty party. There is no way you can make any excuse or defend the actions of Mr. Omar. The justice system is in place to defend I.e. shield, guard, protect & support, the innocent and judge the guilty. I am truly appalled.

I understand that these individuals are not children, and neither are they grown adults. They are young adults, that do know right from wrong, but still need the guidance of their parents as they mature into adult hood. Giving them the complete set of reigns to life in not what they need at this age. on another note - It does not matter how old / grown up your children may be, as a parent you never stop worrying and caring for your children.

go omar this guy was a jerk to everybody so carma

I do feel for both boys. From all the information I have been told about the victim is that he is a bully, a tormentor, he ridicules and demeans others and he likes it. ABUSE is not tolerated by society, whether it is physical or emotional. If he truly likes to bully and torment others - he is a danger in society.
As for the other boy.
I very much agree with the previous comments that this 16 year old minor should by NO means be tried as an adult. He is a 16 year old KID.
The media had NO business posting his photo. Society has laws to protect our minors privacy.

I think it was self defense from what i heard, from other parents that know Omar personally, 
I think we should help support by signing the petition, for his trial and hope the other boy Austin and his friend stop the bulling and learn something from this because GOD works in mysterious ways, just remember he is always watching over us.
get well Austin…...
http://www.petitiononline.com/oka10693/petition.htm

While I expect that Omar had finally reached his breaking point that fateful evening of the subsequent attack, I am totally behind the push to see that he be punished for the WAY he retaliated.  I also think some of the blame here can and should be shared among Omar’s parents and the Lee-Davis staff.  I know the Hanover Public Schools have a “zero-tolerance” policy towards bullying, but their way of dealing with it is to simply to suspend or even expel the student to remove him from the student population.  They don’t even try to see if they can get at the root of the problem or try to fix it. 

Back in the 1950’s and 60’s, what the schools would have done is to get the parents’ permission to set up a conference between the bully and his/her victim(s), and most likely, the root of the problem would surface that there is a “respect” issue that is lacking.  Then, the two students involved would be given the option of fighting it out under school supervision, with 15-oz gloves and no intervention from the bully’s “posse”....a fair fight to establish respect.  Chances are more than likely that the bully would win the fight, but if his victim put up any kind of a fight, he would gain the respect of the bully, his gang, and the general school population. 

Those who think bullies can be dealt with in other, more “civilized” ways are fooling themselves!  While I applaud Omar for finally taking a stance and fighting back against his tormentor, his method of retaliation was totally methodical and unlawful, and he should, at the very least, be found liable either criminally and/or civilly.

Twenty years to life? Give me a break, I don’t think even most pedophiles receive such a prison sentence these days.

Yes, what this kid did was wrong, but if bullying sent him over the edge, then charge the supposed victim with a crime as well, such as harassment or whatever else fits the situation. It’s only fair.

I am a single parent of a 10th grader at Lee Davis, and he has come home on several occations before this incident talking about all the different “clicks” at the school. I wasn’t totally surprised because of the wide range of cultures and income levels in the county. What does surprise me was the on going bullying that happens on an hourly basis, and it seems to go unnoticed. Sit and listen to a bunch of students at a football game..no respect for others at all !!
  To try Omar as an adult is crazy !!
Are they going to charge Austin with a felony for harrassment?
I doubt it ~
So, Hanover…What is the next step in trying to fix a BIG problem in the schools? Not just LD i might add but all schools?
  no hovering in groups in the hallways before class~ here’s a good one UNIFORMS ~ accountability ~ quilty by association~

I know problems are in every school, but I moved to Hanover because they were suppose to be a step above the rest…what a let down !!

LDHS~single parent

He smacked somebody in the face with an ax. bullied or not, he deserves the consequences. Maybe not 20 years to life, but he does deserve it. Verbal bullying is not a crime, hitting someone with an ax is. I agree both children need help, and lots of it. apparently there are issues with both of them that led them to this point. I pray for both children, and both families, but “it is what it is”, whats that old saying “you do the crime…

Have anyone stopped to think that Omar is a minority and he was attending an all white school. Their was a group at the LDH called the “RedNecks”. LDH is called the Confederates. General Lee was for slavery!!!! How can this child get a fair hearing? Blacks were lynched, hanged, beaten and the women raped. He was a minority and the bullies played on that. I feel sorry for the school and Hanover County which is not diversified and needs to be. Would those boys that bullied Omar would they have survived in Richmond Public Schools which is predomiantly black? Of course not.

First, Sandra Lee Davis is not a white school and that is a very prejudice remark. Maybe you think that but go on HCPS.us and look at the school stats in Hanover County. Get your facts straight and we can’t help the past only the future so get off the ban wagon and let’s look at the children’s future..Negative vibs is what everyone is teaching their children no matter what race you are. 

This is something a school administration hopes that never happens…Everyone put yourself if that was your son either one…what would be your reaction. I think that there should be some type of punishment for Austin and I do believe that Omar should be punished. There were many more things he could have picked and defended his self with, plus he had time to take off the protective sheath. His thought process was defintely that he wanted this boy gone. I do agree that bullying is horrible at all schools because no one demands respect at home anymore. Everyone has 5,000 excused why their child should get by with things…My thoughts and prayers are out to everyone..I wouldn’t want to be in anyone of the parties shoes. Remember, it starts from the home.

Sandra- and anyone else who wants to whine… GET OVER YOURSELF!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOT EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS IN THE WORLD IS A RACIAL ISSUE!!! IT USUALLY NEVER Is UNTIL PEOPLE LIKE YOU MAKE IT THAT WAY!!! THIS IS A TEENAGER BULLYING ISSUE!! NOT A WHITE, BLACK, PURPLE, ETC. ISSUE! STOP PULLING RACE AS A CARD FOR EVERYTHING!!